This post is also available in: German
Majestic nature, wildlife, wellness, luxury and maybe even your dream wedding in the bush
This luxurious, privately run lodge is located 29 km south east of Windhoek and about 75 km from the airport, making it the ideal beginning or even better, as in our case, the perfect ending to a memorable Namibia trip. GocheGanas is situated high on a hilltop with breathtaking beautiful views onto the awesome Namibian landscape. This luxurious lodge offers a unique combination of wildlife, nature and wellness experiences.
“GOCHEGANAS” means “place of camel thorns abounding with candle-pod Acacias” in the Damara language.
Elegant chalets
The lodge has sixteen spacious and elegantly designed chalets, each with an en-suite bathroom, private wooden terrace, air conditioning, TV, mini-bar and telephone. One definitely does not need the TV here, as the bush TV is much more interesting.
Ten of the chalets have double beds and a view protected outdoor shower, the other five chalets have superior king-size beds. There is also a family suite with two separate double rooms, which are connected by a spacious terrace.
The view is absolutely amazing in the morning! We would always love to see it.
Wellness Village
For total relaxation there is a great spa with eleven modern equipped treatment rooms, with state of the art equipment such as a heated indoor swimming pool with a masonry vault, an outdoor swimming pool with breathtaking views, a Granite Bath (cave sauna), Kneipp showers and a well equipped fitness gym, yoga facilities as well as a fruit and juice bar.
A large variety of wellness treatments are offered from facial and hair treatments, peelings and massages, pedicures, manicures and baths. For your massage experience you can choose from Marula Oil, Hot Stone, Aromatherapy, Four Hands and Outdoor massages. GocheGanas truly offers an extensive wellness experience at an affordable price.
At the outdoor swimming pool you should also have your camera or binoculars ready to watch the giraffe, waterbuck and many other animals passing by.
Absolutely brilliant and highly recommended is the Outdoor massage. After all, who would expect, that when you are picked up in your bathrobe, you first have to get into a Jeep! We were a bit surprised. Once we arrived at a quiet spot, the massage tables were set up and ready was the small outdoor spa. How wonderful to be massaged in the wilderness, in a light breeze with birds chirping in the background.
There are such a variety of treatments on offer and more than enough treatment rooms and staff, that one can spontaneously decide to try a treatment. Besides the Outdoor massage, we also had hair treatments, pedicures and Indian Head massages. They were all done very professionally and were so relaxing.
Activities
There are 25 different wildlife species located on this private and beautiful 6,000 hectare nature reserve including square-lipped (white) rhinoceros, bat-eared foxes, giraffe, mountain- and plains zebra, cheetah, jackal, leopards, blue- and black wildebeest, eland, oryx, red hartebeest, kudu, springbok, waterbuck, steenbok, duiker, klipspringer, ostriches and warthogs.
Among the activities offered are hikes, guided or individually, game drives, mountain biking, again guided or individually, climbing tours, trips to Windhoek and star gazing under professional guidance.
For the protection of the animals, especially the square-lipped (white) rhinoceros, a Wildlife Welfare Program was launched. There are currently 6 rhinos that live in GocheGanas and 8 rhinos have already been bred and given to other national parks.
Game drive with guide
Early in the morning or late in the afternoon you can explore the abundant wildlife with a game drive. Our drive with guide Mark, was really very interesting. Even though we had already experienced many game drives on our trip, we were still able to discover new animals and learn more.
At sunset we stopped for sundowner drinks and snacks.
Walking on your own
It is so cool that you can walk around on your own here. You get a trail map and then you just follow the painted tracks (white paws and arrows). Such a tour then takes 1-2 hours and with a little luck, you may even get to see some of the many wild animals on your way.
Your physical well-being…
… is well taken care of! The lodge offers excellent gourmet cuisine. In the evening a 3-course meal is served and you can choose between 3 different main courses. Namibian, sometimes even European and vegetarian dishes are served. We always thought the food was delicious!
With a sundowner in the 360 ° bar you can end your day on a high note.
Honeymoon
In the seclusion of the lodge, with its great wellness program and the magnificent landscape, your honeymoon can only be fantastic. Unique sunsets, a sundowner cocktail at the bar or a romantic candlelight dinner under the stars – this is pure romance! Here you can really enjoy your time together as a couple.
Honeymoon-Special: Special turndown service, upgrade to a king-size bed chalet, candlelight dinner around the campfire, Crystal Bath with champagne in the spa
Weddings
One can also get married at GocheGanas. You can either experience “the most beautiful day in your life” just as a couple or in a small group. Naturally, the entire lodge can also be booked exclusively. Up to 35 people can stay here and celebrate all night long.
For the wedding ceremony itself, you drive about 20 minutes to this stunning location, the staff affectionately calls “Little Switzerland”. A gazebo is put up and is then beautifully decorated.
The view here is absolutely breathtaking! On the way to the ceremony, guests get to see some more wildlife. And, how wonderful it must be to get married with giraffes passing by?!
Interview mit manager Katharina Faasch-Lourens
The multilingual management team of the lodge is always available. Whether it is making small talk at breakfast or dinner – the team will tackle things personally to ensure that their guests are well taken care of. They have quite a few interesting stories to tell!
Manager Katharina was kind enough to tell us a bit more about the lodge and its amenities.
Conclusion
This dream lodge really has so much to offer! The beautiful chalets and the views are simply to die for! The Wellness Village is a great place to relax and get pampered. The food is delicious and the game drives are diverse and interesting!
We found it just gorgeous and very relaxing! The perfect way to end our road trip in Namibia. At GocheGanas you simply feel completely at home and can really unwind! The wide open spaces and the view of the mountains are just amazing! We did not want to leave!
The management team really has some great ideas! Whether the spectacular outdoor massage in the bush, a bush lunch under an acacia tree, a bush dinner with barbecue or the bonfire on special occasions – at GocheGanas anything is possible!
Info
GocheGanas Broschüre (eng)
GocheGanas Infoblatt (deu)
Air temperature: 4 – 38 degrees Celsius
Altitude: 1714 – 2211 m above sea level
When to go: May to September. Rainy season is from January to March. Late April / May is perfect weather wise
Price: From 306 EUR per night (double room) including dinner, bed and breakfast.
Board: Dinner, Bed & Breakfast
Overall rating: *****
Special features: Multilingual management team (including German), beautiful scenery with a wonderful panoramic views, excellent wellness facilities, great game drives, delicious food, very friendly staff, conference room for up to 15 people
Tip: Stay for a minimum of 2 nights stay, if not longer – you can really relax here and there is so much to experience
GocheGanas is located in a malaria and ebola-free area!
GocheGanas
P.O. Box 40770
Windhoek
Namibia
Telephone: +264 (0) 61 224909
Fax: +264 (0) 61 224924
Reservation: reservations@gocheganas.com
eMail: info@gocheganas.com
www.gocheganas.com
Certificate of Excellence | Winner 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012 Tripadvisor
Note: During our stay we were partially supported by the GocheGanas Lodge. The opinions expressed in the article are as always our own – 100 percent!
We are looking forward to your comments and we hope you feel now inspired to visit the Lodge!
Monique De Caro
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